RABECCA BANDA writes
A LUSAKA woman has been divorced in the Boma Local Court for being discourteous to her husband of five years.
This was in a case in which Maureen Mbangu, 30, of Garden Chilulu compound was sued by her husband Benson Simwanza, 34, of the same locality for divorce.
Simwanza told senior presiding local court magistrate Ngandwe Mukuka sitting with magistrate Martha Tembo that he married Mbangu in 2013 and have one child together.
“There was no peace from the beginning of this marriage. My wife does not respect me, she insults me. She has a system of taking things and running away from the house when we have disputes,
“She has run away with my properties twice now and does not return them complete. She has private programmes that I am not aware of. She leaves the house immediately I leave and returns at awkward hours,” Simwanza said.
Simwanza told the court that at one time, Mbangu drunk expired medicines to kill herself and liked breaking things in house during arguments.
“She fights me, and one time she wanted to stab me with a knife after throwing a block at me which hit the wall. She told me that she would put poison in my food and that one of us would go to prison while the other to the mortuary.
“I left our house out of fear for my life and want to divorce because I am scared of dying,” Simwanza said.
In defence Mbangu said disputes erupted when her husband found a well-paying job.
“That meant no more sex in our marriage, he says he is very busy and sometimes tired from work to make love with me. He doesn’t give me enough money to buy groceries and food. We always fight because of his behaviour,” Mbangu said.
She further told the court that Simwanza always talked to his girlfriends in her presence and only provided money for nice relish when he was at home.
“He beats me and runs away. He left the house because he is afraid of being arrested by the police. Apart from that I don’t like his friends visiting our house because they have a bad influence on him and say bad things about me,” Mbangu said.
She appealed to the court not to end their marriage.
The court however granted the couple divorce because there was too much violence in their marriage and ordered the man to maintain his child.
